Fr Timothy Radcliffe OP, a former master of the Order of Preachers, has exhorted participants in the Synod on Synodality in Rome to “pray that the Lord will free our hearts from fear”.
Speaking during a retreat held prior to the start of the Synod on Wednesday, he said, “We are gathered here because we are not united in heart and mind.” He noted that “the vast majority” of participants in the synodal process had been “surprised by joy… but some of us are afraid of this journey and of what lies ahead”.
He highlighted the need to “renew the Church as our common home,” saying, “Different understandings of the Church as home tear us apart today.” While for some the Church is defined by “ancient traditions” which provide “a clear Christian identity,” for others, “the present Church does not seem to be a safe home. It is experienced as exclusive, marginalising many people – women, the divorced and remarried.”
During a series of pre-Synodal meditations, Radcliffe observed that often priests find the synodal path most “difficult to embrace”. He explained: “Priests need a strong sense of identity, an esprit de corps. But who shall we be in this Church which is liberated from clericalism? …This is a great challenge for a renewed Church. Let us embrace it without fear.”
To guide Synodal participants, Radcliffe urged all to meditate on the Gospel account of the Transfiguration, describing this as “the retreat Jesus gives to his closest disciples before they embark on the first synod in the life of the Church, when they walk together (syn-hodos) to Jerusalem. This retreat was needed because they were afraid of this journey they must make together.”
Radcliffe predicted that Synod participants would resemble the disciples who “misunderstand each other and even quarrel. But the Lord will lead us onwards towards the death and resurrection of the Church.” He added: “If we listen to the Lord and to each other, seeking to understand his will…we shall be united in a hope that transcends our disagreements.”
Fr Radcliffe’s meditations were among a series of pre-synodal events including Together 2023, an ecumenical prayer vigil held on Saturday in St Peter’s Square, Rome. Participants included the Orthodox Patriarch, Bartholomew I and the Archbishop of Canterbury who met Pope Francis for a private audience on Saturday.
In London, clergy and laity from St Joseph’s Catholic Church, Bunhill Row, St Giles’s Anglican Church, Cripplegate, Wesley’s Chapel and Leysian Mission and Jewin Welsh Presbyterian Chapel also gathered to pray for the Synod. Bishop Brendan Leahy of Limerick, who along with Bishop Alan McGuckian SJ of Raphoe is representing the Irish bishops, said, “When we pray together as Christians, united in the name of Jesus, our prayer is more powerful.”
The Bishop of Argyll and the Isles in Scotland, Brian McGee, said that he had “enjoyed listening to the feedback from people across Scotland and it will be fascinating to hear what people from across the world have to say. There is a wonderful opportunity for renewal of the Church at every level.” He added, “The Synod has planted seeds of hope in the heart of the faithful and in the Church in Scotland. I pray for its growth and fulfilment as we enter the next phase of the process, so that the Church continues to grow as a caring mother and a community of hope.”
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